UPDATE - Turkish foreign minister discusses Gaza with Italian counterpart

UPDATES WITH STATEMENT BY ITALIAN FOREIGN MINISTER

By Busranur Keskinkilic and Efe Ozkan

ANKARA / ISTANBUL (AA) - Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan spoke on Gaza with his Italian counterpart Antonio Tajani over the phone on Wednesday, Turkish diplomatic sources said.

The conversation focused on efforts to achieve a ceasefire and peace in the Palestinian enclave, the sources said, without providing further details.

Tajani said he had a long phone conversation with Fidan. “We support the mediation efforts of Türkiye and other regional partners to convince Hamas to accept the peace plan. It is time to end the hostilities, ensure humanitarian assistance to the civilian population, and promote a lasting political solution that provides for the establishment of the Palestinian state,” he wrote on the US social media company X.

He said both Italy and Türkiye were closely following the Global Sumud Flotilla, which is headed to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid and break the ongoing blockade, and that the priority was avoiding escalation.

The call comes after US President Donald Trump, at a White House press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, unveiled a 20-point plan to end Israel's war on Gaza and install a temporary administration to rebuild the territory.